Shiv Sena Rift : Why Election Commission Allowed Eknath Shinde To Retain Official Name & Symbol?

https://www.livelaw.in/top-stories/shiv-sena-rift-election-commission-allowed-eknath-shinde-retain-official-name-symbol-uddhav-thackeray-221863

Following are the three tests and their application as per which the ECI made its decision–

I. Test of Aims and Objects of the Party Constitution

II. Test of Party Constitution

III. Test of Majority

The ECI, after applying the tests noted that the following outcomes had been revealed–

1. No serious contestation on facts by either side of numerical outcome of legislative wing test had emerged.

2. There was a "democratic deficit" in the amended constitution and the process of its amendments and its workings.

3. The claims of numerical majority in organisational wing by both factions was not satisfactory.

4. The combined reading of the respective numerical counts in the present case reveal more like reliability in the legislative wing.

5. Within the number count, an overwhelming numerical superiority of the Eknath Shinde faction in legislative wing was categorically verifiable. The numerical count included all MPs, MLAs, MLCs.

JUDICIAL APPOINTMENTS AND REFORMS || SESSION 1 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uUIdZW7Xg0M
SESSION 1: EXECUTIVE INTERFERENCE IN JUDICIAL APPOINTMENTS

(Moderator: Ms. Cheryl Dsouza, Secretary, CJAR)

Mr. Dushyant Dave, Senior Advocate, Supreme Court of India
Justice U.U. Lalit, Former Chief Justice of India
Dr. Faizan Mustafa, former Vice-Chancellor, NALSAR University, Hyderabad
Mr Aditya Sondhi, Sr. Advocate, Karnataka High Court
Dr Mohan Gopal, former Director, National Judicial Academy

JUDICIAL APPOINTMENTS AND REFORMS || SESSION 2

SESSION 2: BUILDING A TRANSPARENT AND ACCOUNTABLE COLLEGIUM

(Moderator – Mr. Alok Prasanna, Co-founder Vidhi Centre for Legal Policy)

Justice Madan Lokur, former Judge, Supreme Court of India
Justice Deepak Gupta, former Judge, Supreme Court of India
Justice Ajit Prakash Shah, former Chief Justice, Delhi High Court
Ms. R. Vaigai – Sr. Advocate, Madras High Court
Dr C. Raj Kumar – Founding Vice-Chancellor and Dean, Jindal Global Law School

How news anchors justified Income Tax ‘survey’ on BBC | TV Newsance 202 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I681aY13dPM newslaundry
Is the #BBC funded by China? Is the BBC losing its credibility in the UK? We look at two main tropes that anchors used this week to justify the Income Tax ‘surveys’ on the BBC. As the IT department did its job, #BJP Spokesperson Gaurav Bhatia launched a tirade against the British Broadcaster. Meanwhile, TV news anchors like Aman Chopra and Arnab Goswami played supporting roles in BJP’s war against the BBC. Palki Sharma on Firstpost questioned BBC’s credibility, and sounded a lot like Sudhir Chaudhary on Aaj Tak. We look at how the BBC was banned during the Emergency and why we don’t need to declare an Emergency anymore.

'3 reasons why the Modi govt ordered I-T 'survey' on BBC & why none of them makes sense' https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g0psZJXsWsU ThePrint
Feb 18, 2023 There has been much debate over the Income Tax Survey at BBC offices in Mumbai & Delhi. Does the move against the BBC mirror Indira Gandhi's tactics during the Emergency & what are the reasons behind the action -- Watch ThePrint #SharpEdge with Author & Columnist Vir Sanghvi.

Maharashtra Journalist ‘Killed Due To Conspiracy’? Had Written Reports Critical Of Oil Refinery The Wire https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GX8EYDltmU0

Shashikant Warishe’s Last Article Gave Voice To Locals Opposed To Oil Refinery https://www.india.com/news/shashikant-warishe-alleged-killing-last-article-mahanagari-times-oil-refinery-land-dealer-pandharinath-amberkar-5892053/
Shashikant Warishe, working with the 'Mahanagri Times' was mowed down by an SUV allegedly belonged to realty agent Amberkar. The journalist was on his way to home on a scooty when he was dragged for some distance on the Rajapur Highway. Two days later, he succumbed to his injuries , creating a furore in media and political circles.
Published: February 10, 2023 The People’s Union for Civil Liberties (PUCL), Maharashtra, released a statement saying: “PUCL (Maharashtra) believes that the killing of the journalist is designed to silence and intimidate all those who dare to speak up and to uncover the intimidation and land-grab that has been going on in the name of acquisition of land for the project.”

https://frontline.thehindu.com/news/journalist-crushed-to-death-in-ratnagiri/article66485855.ece

Meghalaya Polls:  BJP Broke Alliance In Meghalaya To Contest All Seats: Amit Shah https://www.ndtv.com/india-news/meghalaya-polls-bjp-broke-alliance-in-meghalaya-to-contest-all-seats-amit-shah-3789158 ​

Amit Shah said the BJP will work towards providing primary, secondary and higher education in the region in Garo.
India NewsPress Trust of IndiaUpdated: February 16, 2023  The BJP, which was part of the NPP-led MDA government, is contesting all 60 seats in the February 27 elections.

"I want to assure you that Meghalaya will be the biggest beneficiary of the PM-DevINE scheme if we are able to form government in the state," Mr Shah said.

Under the Prime Minister's Development Initiative for North East Region (PM-DevINE), the Centre will invest for the development of infrastructure, support industries and social development projects, which will lead to employment generation.

“Soros has attacked Indian parliament…” BJP’s Smriti Irani slams Billionaire investor George Soros  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Za3Ij01w9HY

Union Minister Smriti Irani called upon Indians to unitedly respond to 'foreign powers who try to intervene in India's democratic processes'.

Calling Mr Soros's remark a 'declaration to destroy India's democratic processes', she said Indians have defeated such 'foreign powers' who tried to meddle with our internal affairs earlier as well, and will do so again. "I urge every Indian to give a fitting reply to George Soros," she said. https://www.ndtv.com/india-news/minister-smriti-irani-slams-billionaire-george-soros-over-pm-narendra-modi-remarks-attacking-indias-democratic-process-3790441

https://www.ndtv.com/india-news/minister-smriti-irani-slams-billionaire-george-soros-over-pm-narendra-modi-remarks-attacking-indias-democratic-process-3790441

 Soros questions Modi on Adani, Govt terms it ‘ill intentions’ against India https://www.siasat.com/adani-row-george-soros-says-modi-will-have-to-answer-govt-calls-it-attempt-to-break-indian-democracy-2528777/
"PM Modi would have to answer questions from foreign investors and parliament on allegations of fraud and stock manipulation at Mr. Adani's industrial empire," Soros said in a speech on Thursday.
Photo of News Desk News Desk| Updated: 17th February 2023

The Open Society’s Soros Economic Development Fund is also an active social impact investor in India. Its goals include helping smallholder farmers and small businesses boost their incomes, and making health care, schooling, and financial services more available and affordable to a broader range of people. Since 2008, Open Society has invested over $90 million in start-up and early funding projects managed by Bangalore-based Aspada Investments. https://www.opensocietyfoundations.org/newsroom/the-open-society-foundations-in-india https://www.opensocietyfoundations.org/uploads/216c249e-d874-4229-9a8d-0da211fb622b/fact-sheet-open-society-in-india-eng-20200127.pdf 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=58tqJZsyv7E

EBs Sale Crosses Rs.12 Thousands Crores Mark.  94.124 % of Total Value of EBs Sold are of 01 Cr value denomination.

Electoral Bonds: Amid Concerns on Opacity, Donations Cross Rs 10,000-Crore Mark https://thewire.in/government/electoral-bonds-amid-concerns-on-opacity-donations-breach-rs-10000-crore-mark

Several transparency activists, organisations and political parties have over the years expressed concern about the lack of transperancy around these bonds, as the identity of donors purchasing them remains a secret. According to Right to Information (RTI) activist Commodore Lokesh Batra (retired), who has been tracking the sale of these bonds and their redemption by designated branches of the State Bank of India, the sale of these bonds reached the milestone of Rs 10,000 crore during the 21st Phase under which they were sold from July 1 to July 10.

While the electoral bond scheme was introduced with the Finance Bill 2017 and notified in January 2018 to provide funding to political parties which secure not less than 1% of the votes polled in the last general election to the Lok Sabha or a state assembly, the manner in which it allowed anonymous donations, most of the funds went to the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party had raised eyebrows.

The first to raise a red flag was the Election Commission, which in 2017 itself had raised serious concerns about the scheme. Subsequently, a number of petitions have been filed in the Supreme Court since 2018 challenging its legality. The apex court has twice refused an interim stay on the scheme as sought in its petition by the Association for Democratic Reforms (ADR).

The push and pulls of the ‘market imperative’ along with hostilities from the Indian government since August 2019 means that land in Jammu and Kashmir which was preserved for the tiller in the second half of the twentieth century has now been completely opened up for grabs to the highest bidder.

https://blogs.lse.ac.uk/internationaldevelopment/2023/02/15/from-land-to-the-tiller-to-land-to-the-highest-bidder-land-grabs-in-jammu-and-kashmir/

Sukla Sen - Foil - Those fighting the menacingly expanding footprints of the autocratic regime in India will have to factor this in.
India is, not just a strategic partner in the fight against China. It is also a very attractive business partner. Hence, "democratic" sensibilities are quite unlikely to come into play as far as the state powers are concerned.

That, of course, doesn't mean that one shouldn't address public opinion in these countries.

Extracts by Razi Raziuddin, Social Party of India: Between BBC, Boeing and Airbus, PM Modi sets terms of engagement with the West, Modi has repeatedly referred to three Ds – Democracy, Demand, and Demography – as factors that make India an attractive place for the West to engage and do business with February 15, 2023 Varghese K  George https://www.thehindu.com/news/national/news-analysis-between-bbc-boeing-and-airbus-pm-modi-sets-terms-of-engagement-with-the-west/article66512801.ece 
".....the terms of engagement that Mr. Modi wants to set with the West — a “Hindutva strategic doctrine” for India’s engagement with the world....The BJP’s position is that the BBC is not free media, but a foreign agent that is working with an anti-India agenda. That is a familiar logic for western democracies actually.............The Hindutva strategic doctrine seeks western support and cooperation for its nationalist ambitions. *Hence, western technology and investment are solicited, but there is stiff resistance to western prescriptions on domestic political questions. *On the other side, *when required to choose between a tangible
commercial opportunity and an abstract moral objective, western governments have never been confused.*
.....The Modi government had reminded the Biden administration of the rioters at Capitol Hill <https://www.thehindu.com/news/international/farmers-protest-us-calls-for-dialogue-recognises-right-to-protest/article33750046.ece>  when it was questioned about police action against protesting farmers
running amok in New Delhi, in January 2021
As it happened, on the same day the Tata Group-owned Air India *announced orders for 470 aircraft <https://www.thehindu.com/business/Industry/tata-sons-announces-order-of-250-airbus-aircraft-for-air-india/article66508100.ece>*  from American manufacturer Boeing and French manufacturer Airbus, Indian Income Tax authorities dropped by *at the offices of the BBC <https://www.thehindu.com/news/national/i-t-dept-survey-on-bbc-india-continues-for-second-day/article66511170.ece>*.
Just as Prime Minister Narendra Modi spoke about deepening strategic partnerships with the U.S. and France, BJP functionaries, including Union ministers, accused the BBC of running an anti-India agenda with the support of Opposition parties. Mr. Modi had French President Emmanuel Macron on a video call, and U.S. President Joe Biden on an audio call to celebrate the aircraft deal, while U.K. Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, whose country is also a beneficiary of the deal in which Rolls-Royce will be making the engines for Airbus aircraft, tweeted out his ebullience. <https://www.thehindu.com/news/international/world/Narendra-Modi-addresses-Australian-Parliament-%E2%80%98Australia-will-not-be-at-periphery-of-India%E2%80%99s-vision%E2%80%99/article60318360.ece>, the U.S. was happily doing business with China. In the years that followed, U.S. relations with China nosedived, and Russia invaded Ukraine. The Biden administration now wants to frame international politics as a fundamental
ideological cleft between democracy and autocracy.

On Tuesday, Mr. Modi invited western companies to use the opportunities of India’s expanding civil aviation market. On the first D, western
governments murmur occasional protests, but they cannot hide their excitement when it comes to the second D. The Air India order was Boeing’s
third largest sale of all time, in dollar value, and it is second of all time in quantity.

“This purchase will support over 1 million American jobs across 44 states, and many will not require a four-year college degree,” U.S. President Joe Biden said, according to a White House release.“ This announcement also reflects the strength of the U.S.-India economic partnership. Together with Prime Minister Modi, I look forward to deepening our partnership even further as we continue to confront shared global challenges.” According to Mr. Sunak, the aircraft order will create “better-paid jobs and new opportunities in manufacturing hubs from Derby to Wales,” which will help the U.K. to “grow the economy and support our agenda to level up”. Mr. Macron was described by Mr. Modi as a friend, and both hailed the “strategic partnership” between the two countries. The lure of of the Indian market, powered by its demography, seems stronger than that of the second D — Democracy. 

While the British government has so far remained silent on IT action on BBC, U.S. State Department Spokesperson Ned Price *did not want to make a judgment
<https://www.thehindu.com/news/international/aware-of-bbc-raid-cannot-offer-any-judgement-us/article66510985.ece>*
 other than declaring the importance of free media in a democracy. On whether the action went against democratic values, Mr. Price said, “I couldn’t say. We’re aware of the facts of these searches, but I’m just not in a position to offer a judgment.” The BJP’s position is that the BBC is not free media, but a foreign agent that is working with an anti-India agenda. That is a familiar logic for western democracies actually. The U.S. and EU have imposed a range of *restrictions on Russian media
<https://www.thehindu.com/news/international/youtube-blocks-russian-parliament-channel-drawing-ire-from-officials/article65306070.ece>*  on the same grounds.

The Modi government had reminded the Biden administration of *the rioters at Capitol Hill <https://www.thehindu.com/news/international/farmers-protest-us-calls-for-dialogue-recognises-right-to-protest/article33750046.ece>*
 when it was questioned about police action against protesting farmers running amok in New Delhi, in January 2021. There are many contradictions
in the narrative about a global contest between democracies and autocracies, and the turmoil within democratic countries are significant,
undermining any claims of western superiority on this front.